Emma Raducanu[1] was unable to convert any of her three match points against a determined Barbora Krejcikova, crashing out of the Korea Open while her British compatriots won their Billie Jean King Cup clash against Japan.
The British No 1 sensationally withdrew from playing for her country at the start of the month, shocking her captain Anne Keothavong[2] with the 11th-hour decision.
Instead, Raducanu opted for a full-send tilt at ranking points during the Asian swing, starting her journey in Seoul on Wednesday.
But while the 22-year-old was able to despatch world No 41 Jacqueline Cristian in straight sets in her tournament opener, former Wimbledon[3] champion Krecjikova proved a tougher obstacle.
Raducanu sprinted away with the opening set 6-4 and looked in cruise control in the second as the Czech star’s serve went to pieces.
But down 5-3, Krecjikova held her nerve and broke Raducanu as she stuttered serving out the match, missing two of her match points.
Emma Raducanu was undone despite having three match points to claim a place in the Korea Open quarter-finals
The British No 1 opted to prioritise the tournament over playing in the Billie Jean King Cup
The Briton then was unable to see out her third match point in the tiebreak, with Krejcikova claiming the set 6-6 (12-10) after a gritty display reminiscent of her comeback win against Taylor Townsend at the US Open.
There, the American star missed out on an unedifying eight match points, but Krejcikova was no less bold in South Korea, finally overcoming her opponent 6-1 in the final set.
Raducanu will be disappointed not to return to the quarter-finals, having made the stage last year in Seoul before being forced to withdraw against Daria Kasatkina during their match-up.
As such, the former US Open champion’s ranking points will be affected by her early dismissal, something that was at the front of mind for Raducanu when making the decision not to play Billie Jean King Cup in Shenzen.
So too was the opportunity to spend more time working with her new coach, Rafael Nadal’s former mentor Francisco Roig[4] – who is also known as Francis.
Roig and Raducanu’s fledgling partnership began amid the American hard-court swing this summer, and as she explained after her emotional victory over Cristian[5], building on their relationship is crucial to her progress.
‘It was a truly difficult decision,’ Raducanu said after the match. ‘I love the BJK Cup so much, and last year, I gave it my all despite the difficult circumstances (recovering from injury to play at the finals in Malaga).
‘However, the Korea Open was a crucial time for me to get in sync with my new coach, Francis.
Barbora Krejcikova pulled off an impressive comeback in a similar fashion to her US Open despatch of Taylor Townsend
Raducanu is keen to continue working with her new coach Francisco Roig after a promising summer
The player admitted that she was disappointed not to compete for her country, as she did at last year’s finals in Malaga
‘Even though it was the end of the season, I felt it was more important to work with an experienced coach ahead of the Asian swing. I wanted to prioritise working with him and further developing myself.
‘Having the opportunity to develop with such an experienced coach was the main reason I decided to participate in the Asia Series, starting with this Korea Open.’
Raducanu will also be looking to improve her ranking to ensure a seeded berth at next year’s Australian Open.
The player is currently ranked 32nd in the world standings, but has no more points to defend this season – which should see potential gains in Asia may dividends.
As for Keothavong, the team captain – who called up Raducanu’s close friend Fran Jones in her stead – is keen to focus on her current players.
‘It’s obviously disappointing, but I do want the main focus to be on the players I have and the challenge we have ahead,’ Keothavong said ahead of Great Britain’s meeting with Japan on Thursday.
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‘I believe in the players that I’ve got. How the team were able to perform in April to get us into this position was fantastic, and I see no reason why we can’t do the same.
‘Players will make decisions they feel is in their best interest, but my focus is just on this team. We take a huge amount of pride in this competition and we do want to be world champions.’
Britain won their opening tie against Japan 2-0, with Katie Boulter and Sonay Kartal triumphing over Mokuya Uchijima and Ena Shibahara respectively.
The team will now face off with the United States in their semi-final on Saturday.
References
- ^ Emma Raducanu (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ shocking her captain Anne Keothavong (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Wimbledon (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ spend more time working with her new coach, Rafael Nadal’s former mentor Francisco Roig (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ her emotional victory over Cristian (www.dailymail.co.uk)